John McAfee, the creator of a programme that is among the most-used virus protection programmes worldwide, was a controversial figure, cryptocurrency promoter, tax opponent and fugitive who twice made long-shot runs for the US presidency. Morgan said talking about his father’s death was the only time during their long meeting that McAfee cried. When the first major computer virus, called “Brain”, hit in 1986, “John instantly dialled up a programmer he knew and said, ‘There’s a big opportunity. He called the program VirusScan and the company McAfee Associates. But the rebranding was short-lived, and Intel in 2016 spun out the cybersecurity unit into a new company called McAfee.

Source: The Guardian June 24, 2021 04:52 UTC